February 2011
I started the year off making a conscious effort to be more proactive in engaging with people in my network. The people I’ve met have been great and so far it’s been very rewarding. It’s just worked out however, that over the last few weeks, some of the people I’ve met with have been people I already know, some quite well. So this week it was a real treat, and truer to my original intention, to be able to meet with two people whom I’ve been connected to for quite a while but have never met in person.
Euan Morton (@BlackDogRsrch)
With over 10 years experience in various Information Technology disciplines and a Master’s Degree in Library Science from the University of Buffalo, Euan knows how to find what you need to know. Getting ready to work on the next big thing? You’ve got a lot of homework to do. Who are your competitors? Do they have patents on anything related to your idea, or even part of it? How much do you know about your target audience? Euan specializes in competitor and market analysis as well as patent research. He can take care of all that legwork for you. Euan’s Black Dog Research is ‘dogged’ in their research for you.
Bre Roz (@BreRoz)
I think Bre might be Rochester’s internet queen. She is literally everywhere.Twitter, LinkedIn, Foursquare, Facebook, Posterous, YouTube, Vimeo. The list goes on. She definitely “gets” social media and is immersed in it. And with over 8500 followers, it’s obvious she puts out quality content that keeps people engaged and coming back. Like me, Bre is a front-end web developer so it was nice to sit down and share some funny/sad client stories, throw some ideas around and talk shop. It’s too bad we finally met just before she relocates to Chicago. But if you’re in that area and need a kick-ass front-end developer, look her up.
January 2011
It’s somewhat of a coincidence that this week I happened to talk to two people, both whose work has my utmost respect and have years of experience under their belts, who took fate into their own hands and made the leap into self-employment. Check out Jonathan Everitt, freelance writer, and Sheri Bierman, programmer:
Jonathan Everitt (@jgeveritt)
Writing the bio of a professional copywriter is intimidating, so hopefully he’ll go easy with the red pen. Like a lot of social media relationships, I don’t really remember how I first got connected to Jonathan. It’s probably inevitable in a town this size that people in overlapping industries eventually meet. Although Jonathan started his professional life at a newspaper as an editor and designer, he is now a freelance copywriter working with a mix of direct clients and collaborative ventures with other independent creatives. His blog, jonathaneveritt.com, features creative people across a wide variety of disciplines, from filmmaking to jewelry design to illustration. As a “curator” of news and trends, Jonathan devours online content and shares the best of it through social media.
Sheri Bierman (@svchick)
Sheri is a Middlebury, VT-based programmer. I’m not sure I’m supposed to say how long exactly, but she and I have known each other and worked together on and off for a while. Like Jonathan (above), Sheri recently made the jump to freelancing. Her new company, Southpaw Computing, focuses on web site and application development. Check it out for affordable web solutions that allow small businesses to make their presence known. Locally, they’re also available for PC and small network maintenance.
January 2011
Great lunch today with some old friends and some new ones too.
Doug McSorley (@dougmcsorley)
Even though we’re both in Rochester, Doug and I were connected through social media for several years before we finally managed to meet in person. (Although, in our defense, I was living in Oregon for a good portion of that time.) Doug specializes in social media, SEO and web analytics. He tweets on those topics @dougmcsorley and blogs at Vinnie D Social Media.
Amber Rampino (@AmberUX)
Amber is currently a Buffalo-based visual and user experience designer, internet marketer and type nerd (that last part is her words not mine). In addition to planning a relocation to Rochester, Amber recently left the agency world to fully embrace freelancing. Keep your eyes on her tweets and www.amberrampino.com for her portfolio, which is coming soon.
Matthew Ray (@MatthewRay)
Matt is the Social Media and Digital Marketing Specialist at Global Crossing, which means that he touches just about everything Internet-related for them. Matt is very involved in local community events and I’m excited to be working with him to put on the local Rochester Twestival event (@ROCTwestival), which he’s been involved with for many years. I don’t know when he finds the time, but when he does, he enjoys traveling and photography.
January 2011
This week things were a little busier so I had fewer “social” meetings on the books. But I did get to have lunch with a few old friends, so here’s a little bit about them:
Phil Visalli (LinkedIn)
Everybody needs a Phil. Phil is the kind of guy who would do anything for his friends. Need help moving (check; several times), need help securing your home wireless network (check), want to know why your new smartphone is so slow (check), need help hanging drywall (not yet), you get the idea. Network Engineer at Elizabeth Wende Breast Care, superhero and radio personality by night.
Clark Dever (@clarkdever)
Clark and I go WAY back. Like all the way to high school. For him anyway. I’ve always been impressed by Clark’s knowledge and initiative. I was making pizzas in high school. He was writing code that powered e-commerce sites generating millions of dollars annually. He’s always been ahead of the curve, so it’s not surprising that he’s now Manager of Social Media for a company like Vuzix, makers of augmented reality eyewear.
Will Ingalls (@Wingalls)
I first met Will through Clark (see above) while visiting Buffalo. But I see him a lot more often now that he’s a Photojournalism student at the Rochester Institute of Technology. When not making photographs he enjoys great food, friends, and travel. Check out some of his work at www.wjingalls.zenfolio.com.
January 2011
Use of social media has exploded and the tools that used to be the domain of young, tech-savvy, early adopters are now an important part of daily life for everybody. So it’s not unusual for someone who participates in social media as a hobby, never mind as a profession, to have hundreds of Facebook friends or Twitter followers. It’s good to have friends but there can be a huge difference in the level of connection in some of those relationships. Some you interact with more than others. Some you never even meet. Even those in your own city. What’s the value in that?
As part of a “resolution” for 2011, I decided to meet, in person, one person from my network (LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, etc) each week. It could be for lunch or just a quick coffee. These meetings don’t have an agenda other than to put a face to a name and create a little more depth in that connection. I want to find out a little bit more about my connections personally and also get a better understanding of what you do. If there are ways we can help each other with personal or professional goals, that’s great. If I can introduce you to a fellow connection who can help you, that’s awesome. Even if neither of those things happens, it’s still time well spent.
Inspired by some long-ago Friday Follow posts by Clark Dever, I decided to publish some information about the person that I met that week to share with other connections. It worked out that this week I was able to meet with more than just one person. So here goes:
Jessica Blackmer (@jkblackmer)
I haven’t met Jessica in person yet but she was nice enough to take some time this past week to talk to me about social media. As a Content Developer for Bryant & Stratton College Online Education, Jessica plans, executes and analyzes every aspect of the Online Division’s social media campaigns. You can check out the blog created by Jessica and her team at http://onlineblog.bryantstratton.edu. Jessica is obsessed with reading about, learning about and trying new social media ideas and technologies; particularly mobile technology and where mobile websites and location-based apps are headed.
Paul Gebel (@paulgebel)
Paul and I had been mutually connected for a while on Twitter before I met him (very briefly) at TEDxRochester back in November. Although he’s been to 36 countries and every continent but Antarctica, he’s pleased to call Rochester home. After a distinguished career in the military and an MBA from RIT, Paul started his own business as a financial representative for Northwestern Mutual. While his military service makes veteran’s causes near and dear to his heart, his passion is helping everyone prepare financially for those big moments in life; marriage, buying a house, having a baby, retirement.
James Parrillo (@jamesparrillo)
Like Paul, Jim and I had met briefly before, at the recent refreshROC event. The type of work and our philosophies about it are very similar so it was nice to sit down with him and talk shop. Like me, he believes that although clients come to us with a desire for the all the latest bells and whistles, it’s more important to sit down with them and discuss their real goals. Because those two things are not always conducive to one another. Most recently his work has focused on presenting client sites in more visual ways that convey their message in as few words as possible. He believes, “the web is an 80-90% right-brained visual environment and the remaining 10-20% just gets ignored anyway.”
